MYCOLOGICAL NOTES 251 



accurate drawing taken from the fresh plant by m}^ niece Miss Cooper, 

 of Hanipstead." There lias been considerable doubt about the identity 

 of this fungus, which is described and figured as having ternate 

 spikes of spores, Saccardo (following Purton) considers it, in Syll. iv. 

 '^o, to be the species called M. racemosa by Persoon (Syn. p. (592) and 

 Mucor ccespitosus by Bolton (pi. 132, f. 2), and he attributes to it 

 *' ex icone " globose spores. 



Purton considers it also to be the " Aspergillus terrestris, cespi- 

 tosus, ac ramosus, albus " of Micheli {\A. 91. f. 4), and at the same 

 time his " Aspergillus albus, tenuissimus, graminis dactyloidis facie, 

 seminibus rotundis " (pi. 91, f. 3). Bolton's figure is undoubtedly 

 the same fungus as Micheli's fig. 4. Purton's figure, which is almost 

 identical with that of Micheli (fig. 4), is very similar to that of 

 Bolton and evidentl}'- contains suggestions of both. 



All these latter show constant ternate spikes of spores. The 

 Cofton Park Fungus had many ternate, but also many with one or 

 several spikes, also some with unbranched stems as in Micheli's fig. 3. 

 With the low powers which these authors had to use the spores do 

 look round, although with modern microscopes they are seen to be 

 lemon-shaped. I would suggest that, as the fungus which the}^ met 

 with was no doubt common (it is referred to by many authors 

 of those times, as by 0. P. MuUer in Flor. Fridr. p. 228), they have 

 misled us by representing the ternate spikes as universally^ jjresent, 

 instead of being only occasional. The reason why they are often 

 ternate is that there is usuallj^ a denticle on the summit of a branch 

 with often two denticles at a slightl}^ lower level. The figures of 

 Bolton and Purton show that the draughtsmen were under the 

 influence of Micheli's fig. 4. 



Note. — In '' Mycological Notes. — IV." in this Journal for 1919 

 there were two omissions. On p. 207, last line, a JPhi/Ilosticta is 

 mentioned without a name ; this should be P. hellunensis Mart. In 

 the description of the many-septate spores of SjyhcBruUna intermixta, 

 f. valde-evolula (p. 210), it was not mentioned that these were in no 

 sense beginning active germination. The bi-anches were still attached 

 to the bush, and they and the perithecia were quite dry. Brefeld has 

 figured exactly similar sj^ores in the same species as occm-ring in his 

 cultures when active germination was beginning. 

 (To be continued.) 



SHORT NOTES. 

 Herbarium Pests. The method of poisoning herbarium speci- 

 mens by means of pei'chloride of mercury in spirit is often objected 

 to, and comparatively few amateur botanists resort to it. For clean- 

 ing sheets that have become affected with pests, as well as for treating 

 specimens before they are put away, I am in the habit of using a 

 saturated solution of naphthalin in petrol. This is applied rapidly by 

 means of a large camel-hair '* mop " brush, the petrol quickly evapo- 

 rating and leaving the naphthalin as a crystalline deposit in the 

 interstices of the plants. A large number of sheets can be dealt 

 with in a short time by this method. The petrol leaves no stain, and 

 has no injurious effect. Of course, the process must be carried out in 



